Figuring in the abstract

Lolita Harper

Broad brush stokes, texture and color collected in conceptual forms

that speak volumes about the human condition mark the work of one of

California’s most acclaimed artists, whose work is now on display at

the Orange County Museum of Art.

The works of internationally acclaimed artist Nathan Oliveira can

be seen at the Newport Beach museum now through July 27.

“He was the first California artist recognized on the

international artist scene,” museum spokesman Brian Langston said.

“He rocked the international art scene.”

A family of artists -- a mother and her three grown daughters --

who visited the exhibit Friday afternoon said they especially enjoyed

Oliveira’s use of color and texture.

“We are color people,” daughter Anne Christensen said.

“We like his use of paint,” matriarch Joan Christensen said. “I

can tell he has influenced a lot of people.”

Claire Christensen said his works were bold for the time they were

painted, but they still read beautifully today.

“Still quite abstract, but not quite enough for the times,”

Langston said.

Oliveira began his career as part of curator Peter Selz’s

insurgent exhibit in 1956 that flew in the face of the New York art

scene, Langston said. When the art world was enthralled with the

abstract, Selz’s exhibit emphasized the figure.

“It caused a lot of consternation,” Langston said. “It was viewed

as conservative, or anti-modern ... but Oliveira stayed with his

vision.”

The Oliveira exhibit at the Orange County Museum of Art, also

curated by Selz, “closes the circle that launched his career,”

Langston said.

Born in Oakland of Portuguese heritage, Oliveira is

internationally known as a painter, sculptor and printmaker, Langston

said. Oliveira, active in the Bay Area for more than 40 years, is a

professor emeritus of art at Stanford University, where he taught for

more than three decades before retiring in 1995.

The acclaimed artist studied at the California College of Arts and

Crafts, where he received his graduate and undergraduate degrees,

Langston said. He taught there and at the San Francisco Art Institute

before joining the faculty at Stanford in 1964.

Oliveira’s works are divided into four sections: Figures, Sights,

Windhovers and Stelae.

Figures highlight the human shape with large brush strokes and

striking color. The large canvases feature abstract forms that

blatantly contrast with their background.

“Oliveira believed art was about the human condition and the human

figure,” Langston said.

The Sights collection contains landscapes and places, Langston

said.

Windhovers comprises large paintings with a theme of the world

from above. Oliveira would often hike the hills of Palo Alto and

watch the hawks, Langston said.

“These almost appear as if he has the vision of the hawk,”

Langston said, pointing to the large curves. “It is the vision of the

world from above.”

The Stelae were inspired by ancient architecture, he said.

The final collection is best classified as “other,” Langston said,

as it features some of his more recent works, watercolors and prints.

A small girl with curly blond locks had a distinct interpretation

of Oliveira’s “Allegorical Drawing.” The piece, done in ink, brush

and pen, combined black, grays and neutral colors in the form of a

figure with wings.

“It’s a fly, momma,” the girl said.